John houpt



@dinard gime @met @titille 'JOHN HOUPT, -OF SPRINGTOWN, PENNSYIll/TANIA.

Letters Patent No. 102,005, dated April 19, 1870.

The Schedule referred to :in these Letters Patent and making part o! the same.

` I, JOHN HOUPT, of Springtown, in the county, of 4Bucks and State ot' Pennsylvania, have invented certam Improvements in Condensers for Steam-Engines,

lof which the following is a specification.

Nature mul Objects of the Invention.'

My invention relates; more especially, to an improvement in condensing steam-engines, for which Letters Patentwere granted to me dated the 18th day of May, 1869, the said improvement consisting .in the Ycombination ot' a plurality of condensers with a-single steam-cylinder, for the purpose therein speciiied, the said condensers, when ,more than one set is used for each end of the cylinder, acting independently oteach other, hut for the single purpose ofproduc'rng the required vacuum in front oi'fthe piston@ My present invention, however, while it divides the` exhaust steam into two portions, as required in my saidpatented invention, differs in this, that it produces instantly, and without the use o f an'air-pulnp, a more perfect vacuum in front of the piston, by con` densing only one of the two portions of the exhaust steam tbr the purpose of producing the said vacuum,

.while the otherportion is either condensed in a separate'or independent chamber over the usual hot well, as required in marine engines, or is allowed to escape from said chamber into the open air, as in stationary orland origines, where there is an abundance of fresh waterto supply the boilers.

Description of the Accompanying Drawings. Figure l is a vertical longitudinal central section, embodying my invention; and

Figure 2, a sectionai plan view of the lower portion of iig. 1.

, General Description.

spindle-valve C, whereby the said opening between' the two chambers A and B is periodically closed' by a positive motion given I,to the valve by a rock-shaft, D, whichpasses horizontally through the upper part of the chamber B, and has a fixed arm, d, which is articulated to the lower endof the spindle vof the said valve C, motion being giventothe rock-shaft D by means of a lever, d", and the` usual detachable connecting# rod, operated by the engine. i

'lhe secondary condenser B is a rectangular chamber, which is fixed lto rest secure] y upon a substantial base, E, its lower portion vconstituting the hot well, With-a pipe, b', which leads to the usual pump i'or suppl ying water to the boiler, and a Siphon-pipe, 2, which passes out through the one side ot' chamber B, and isv iitted with au adjustable hand-valve, 3, near its upper part, out-sideof the chamber, for the purpose of regulating thereby the height of thenwater in the hot well, and wit-h a spring-valve, 4,'aty its lower end, for preventing an accidental return of wat-er, the said outside portion ofthe siphon-pipe 2 extending down into and nearly'to the bottom of au outside water-receiver or waste-well, F, which is fitted with an overflow'- spoilt, 5, anda lowering-cock,

-Above the hot well water-line x, iuA the secondary condenser B, a pair of adjustable slides, 7 7, is fitted,

so that they can be moved by hand over the oppositel sides of an inclined partition, 8, which has two openinffs 9 9' throu rh it that can be either closed or varied in area by moving'the slides accordingly.

The upper portion of the secondary condenser B is divided transversely by a curved uprightpartition, 10,

which extends downward toward the middle of the partition 8, containing the slides 7 7, the arm d on the rock-shaft D working in a roomy slot in the said partition 10. i

On the rock-shaft side ofthe partition 10 the secondary condenser B extends in a curve upward, so as to aiord an elevated continuation, b, which serves as a support for an elevated escape-pipe or flue, H.'

Between the partsb and H there is placed au overbalanced valve, g', closed in its normal condition, but yielding upward to a puff of steam from the primary condenser A, to. 1ct out the air, but immediately closing again, the tendency of which is to keep the. chamber B'closed against the undue escape of steam, and

Valso to eifectually prevent any rush of air into the said chamber B through the escape-pipeH, when a vacuum is produced in the chamber.

Attached to the valve g is a slender spring coil, g",

' which prevents the valve from accidentally remaining open. l I is a pipe, provided with an air-pressure equalizer, J, and communicates, at one end, with any suficieut head of cold water, and at the other end- With a jetspreader, K,that is xed to discharge in the center of the primary condenser A when the stop-val vc1 is opened, the said valve i being intendedtp beopjened periodically by a positive motion derived from a cam or eccentric, through an adjustable connecting-rod, operated by the engine in the usual manner.

. Branching downward from the pipe I is another pipe, L, which, by an upward curve, enters through the under side of division b of the secondary condenser B, and, turning downward a short distance, ends in a jet-spreader, l.

This pipe L also has a stop-valve, l, which may be opened periodically by a positive motion from a cam or eccentric, derived through an adjustable connecting-rod, operated by the engine in the usual manner, or it may be adjusted to keep thel jet spray of Z constantly running, if preferred.

The different Yparts described being connected together substantially as set forth, Aand the pipe a connected to the usual exhaust-chest of the valve or valves of the steam-cylinder of the engine, the moving parts are then to be adjusted to operate as follows, viz:

Immediately before the crank of the engine reaches its dead-point the exhaust-valve of the steam-cylinder and the valve C open, and thus allow the first puff of high steam from the steam-cylinder to pass down through the primary condenser A, driving the air, and any water of condensation which maybe therein be fore it into the secondary condenser B, when the valve C instantly closes, and the valve i opens and lets a copious spray of cold water be discharged through the jet-spreader K, which instantly condenses all the L steam in the said condenser A, and thus producesin front of the piston as perfect a vacuum as can be produced in a condenser. The pni` of high steam, which had just previously passed out of the primary condenser A into the secondary condenser B, continues down through the adjusted opening 9, in the partition 8, into contact with the surface of the water in the hot well in the lower part of chamber B, andI thence, partially condensed, up through the opposite opening 9' in the partition 8 into the division b", forcing the air therein out through the yielding valve g', which then instantly closes, and the confined steam, being subjected to the spray of cold water from the jet-spreader Z', is thereby wholly condensed, thus producing a partial vacuum in the secondary condenser B, the water falling down through the partition 8 into the hot well beneath.. Should the vacuum produced in the secondary condenser B cause the water in the hot well to rise, the spring-Valve 4 in the secondary well F closes, and, consequently, arrests its progress.

'lhe eold-Waterjet l in the secondaryA condenser B, is required in marine engines only, for the purpose of saving a suicient quant-ity of the water of condensation to keepthe boilers supplied; but, in land engines, the lirst puff. of the steam which passes through the primary condenser A, at each exhaust of the cylinder, i after passing from the hot Well up through the division b in a partially-condensed or cooler state, forces open the valve y' and escapes, leaving the secondary condenser B with an imperfect vacuum, but, nevertheless, in a condition very favorable to the entrance of the next puli` of high steam, together with the water of condensation left in the primary condenser A in making the preceding vacuum therein.

The described apparatus may have the pipe a' made to communicate either with both or with only one of theexhausts of the steam-cylinder of the engine, as may be deemed necessary or expedient, using either a double or a single apparatus, as the adoption of either arrangement may require.

It will be evident, without any further description or explanation, that, as the vacuum required in front of the piston is produced by operating on less than one-half of the exhaust steam liberated just beforeeach stroke of the pistou, and the consequent expulsion thereby of the air in the primary condenser' through which the puff passes, a more perfect and rapid condensation of the said steam will be eiiected, and, consequently, a more perfect vacuum produced in front of the piston, by means of my present invention, than any hitherto produced for the purpose.

Claims. A

I claim as my invention- 1. The arrangement and combination of a primary condenser and a secondary condenser with an intervening valve, for the purpose of dividing the exhaust strani preceding each stroke of the piston of a steamcylinder into two parts, in such a manner as to retain the smaller portion ot' lthe high steam of the exhaust `within the primary condenser A for condensation, and

the consequent productionbf amore perfect vacuum in front of the piston in the said cylinder, substantially as hcreinbefore set forth.

2. In combination with the primary condenser A, the secondary condenser B and the valve C, arranged as described, the employment of a cold-water jetspreader, l, in the Vsecondary condenser B, the same heilig arrangedl to operate therein, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

3. In combination with the primary condenser A, the secondary condenser B and the valve O, arranged as described, the employment of the overbalanced valve g', arranged to operate between the space b in the secondary condenser B and the escape-pipe H, substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.

J OHN HOUPT.

Witnesses:

BENJ. Monrsox, WM. H. Monrsozv. 

